THE SON of TV chef Rosemary Shrager, 61, is proud of his mum's effort on TV show I'm A Celebrity Get Me Out Here.
Tom Shrager, 40, wife, Sam, 40, and children Freddie, 8, and Suki, 6, from Pleshey, have been glued to their TV screen for the last two weeks as they watched the Ladette to Lady-star do battle in the Australian jungle.
But she was voted off the show on Tuesday evening, despite being tipped by the bookies to win the final on Saturday.
"We are really proud of her and we think she has done a great job," said Tom, who grew up in London but moved to Chelmsford eight years ago with his wife from Southend.
During the show, Tom saw his mother get a back rub from boxing star David Haye and splash about in a bathtub in her swimwear and infuriate the rest of the camp with her farting and snoring. "I don't think I get an adrenaline rush watching the show, it is more like pure panic and of what's coming," he laughed.
"As soon as the programme starts I think 'oh no', but then I get a text straight away from a friend saying she is brilliant.
"I think in general she has been herself, and that is mum.
"I think my favourite moment was on day one when she farted and snored; she peaked at that moment. Her snoring is loud, and the TV doesn't do it justice, but at the same time it is TV gold."
Self-confessed extrovert, Rosemary, said before the jungle that she has no inhibitions, hates snakes and rats and has never camped in her life.
But as a chef, her skills were useful in camp, and Tom knows firsthand what Rosemary's meals taste like.
"Growing up with mum, although being slightly strict, it was all about the family and that meant lunch, dinner and breakfasts.
"I wouldn't say she was tough, she just instilled good ethics and manners in us from a very young age, like making sure your knife and fork are put together after finishing a meal.
"We always had great food and good conversation, and everyone is a little bit nuts in my family.
"Mum's best recipe is chicken and potato pie, it is her own recipe where she has taken a French and English dish and put them together. It is an eight-man feast, it is a gift, absolutely incredible, that was what I had for my birthday meal every year.
"She really is amazing, when she didn't have a lot of things in the house, she just whips up some homemade tagliatelle and a lobster bisque sauce."
He added: "I don't think the other contestants were particularly forthcoming to her at first and her cooking skills. But then she made that little pancake thing out the beans they were fed up with, and then thought this is useful and they warmed to her."
